Empty Stomach
by Ivy Quinzel
Summary: Clover needs to find food, read here to learn about her struggle and who she needs it for.


Time spent(initially): ~5 hours 

Time spent(with critique): ~4 days

I would like to give a shout out to all the people who helped me and critiqued this piece. Specifically to the wonderful Cupcake Kitten who has helped critique this for me several times in the last few days while I have been working on it. Thank you /p/vtpgy1f

This prompt came from the wonderful mind of, DonnieBonnie /p/wqavlx

Even though I received this prompt for a roleclan kit session, I didn't follow it directly and went further than just responding to it. I got the inspiration and made it into a short story. 

**Prompt**

The small apprentice peered out of the warm den her dark fur reflecting off the suns rays giving off a shimmering figure.Oddpaw watched as the clouds began to scatter the sky her mouth wide open as she slowly turned over to the clan exit.

Oddpaw smelled and unknown senct her ears leaned towards the unknow cat,"Hello ?" She called her eyes widening as she found you.

The jungle was mosit and wet,everywhere your paws lead you two you were more likely to have mud all over yourself.Oddpaw liked her camp,the jungle seemed quiet and peaceful.

She stepped back watching you carring the plup rabbit in your jaws,"What are you doing ?!" She called out.

How would you react as this small delicate apprentice finding you carring prey from there clan,what would you say,how would you react to this problem?

 **Response**

 _ **Clover**_

Still air, suffocated by the dead wind and canopy of large, motionless leaves far above. Blocking any hope of a fresh breeze, causing the air to become increasingly humid and dense. Every paw step felt compared to walking through thick ferns, heated in the sun after a storm. Light began to show in the sky through trunks of countless trees. A milky wan peeking through the abundance of leaves and vines, onto a pale grey tabby she-cat with moss green eyes and a dark tail with a white tip. As the sun glistened on her well-Kept fur, what was most noticeable about the wandering she-cat, was her ribs which stuck out In an odd manner. It was obvious it had been moons since the tabby had a decent meal.

Clover had been walking through this uncomfortable weather all night. The molly flicked her ears in irritation as gnats swarmed around them, trying to shake them off, only for them to reappear a moment later. The air had become so thick that every breath she took was immediately knocked back out of her. The tabby had been searching for food but has been unable to find anything slow enough for her to catch. Every time and again, a mouse would scuttle by, the tabby she-cat would clumsily flail at the creature trying with every shred of strength she had left to catch the small animal. Every time she tried however, the she-cat would only end up with a bruised ego and hungry belly. The pale grey she-cat dragged her paws over the dried grass that coated the jungle floor, one of her paws catching on an upraised root to make her stumble.

In her fatigue, she struggled to regain her footing. Instead, she sat thinking to herself 'I need to get back home, but I can't go back empty-pawed, they would be so disappointed.' Regaining her charisma, she stood and once again continued on her trek. Hunger clawed at her belly, it had been days since her last meal. She was careful that every morsel of it went home, rather than in her own belly, only allowed herself to eat what was left, which was usually only a large bone or a few scraps of meat if she was lucky. 

As the loner continued to trudge through the muggy air, her tail dragging onto the ground, leaving a trail in the dried grass behind her. She opened her mouth yet again. This time, however, rather than just dank air, dried grass, or vines, that usually plagued her senses. A powerful scent coated her tongue and filled her nose. It was the overbearing scent of cats, a lot of them. Before the molly could think too long about it, she saw something that confused her.

Through the shrubbery ahead of her, she could see vines trailing their way down a tree. However, unlike all the other trees with vines crawling down them, Clover noticed that there seemed to be a slight breeze blowing these vines outward. It seemed to her that there was actually nothing behind those vines. She trotted curiously to the unusual sight. As she examined it closer now, she could see that there was, in fact, nothing behind the vines. The tree's base grew separately, as if it had started as two trees, but grew to be one. This left a sizable gap, large enough for a cat to squeeze through. Curious, the mottled she-cat did just that, and fit herself through the hole.

What hit Clover first was the immediate fresh air. The weight of the muggy air that had pushed on her chest since she stepped into the jungle, lifted as soon as she made her way through to the clearing. She finally felt as though she were able to breathe freely once again. Next, what the she-cat saw past the trees amazed her, it was the cause of the fresh air. Above her, there was nothing but open sky. Sun shining directly on her as it peaked just above the trees in the distance. The most bizarre part was that there were trees, encircling the clearing, this creating a barrier from outside creatures. The only entrance was the gap Clover just came in through, preventing any larger predators from being able to enter.

With no trees above her to filter out that sunlight, the pale molly arched her back, reveling in the heat that scorched her fur. Looking around, the loner then noticed something that was completely foreign to her. There were small trees, with thin vines draping over the leaves. This created shelters from rain, but since there was no wind there was no need for protection from it. these odd plants were scattered across the open clearing. From what she could see through the thin canvas of vines, there were many cats. All sleeping in these unusual shelters,curled up and asleep, still unaware she was there. 'How many cats have I just stumbled upon?' Clover was bewildered by the realization.

Before the loner's mind could wander off to the possibility of there being more shelters like the one she has just uncovered. She saw something in the corner of her eye. She turned her head and fixed her green gaze upon the largest pile of fresh-kill she had ever seen, sitting in the center of the clearing. She bounded in excitement to the pile that overflowed with mice, voles, small birds, and best of all, rabbits. 'Just one of those rabbits would be enough to feed a fox,' clover thought, perplexed. Her hunger clawed at her stomach yet again. The pain reminding her of her hunger and her need to return home.

Without another thought, Clover quickly picked up one of the rabbits by the scruff to bring home. Turning around to leave she took a few steps before she stole another glance at the pile. 'There's so much... it wouldn't hurt if I just took a mouse for myself.' Leaving the rabbit where it was, she bounded back to the pile. Grabbing a small mouse, the molly inhaled the soft meat. She ate the small creature so quickly she had barely been able to taste it, but already, her hunger was sedated. She had not been able to eat so much in such a long time; her stomach didn't seem sure of what to do with so much food.

Remembering again her need to get home, as well as the realization that the cats in the trees would soon be waking, Clover bounded back to the rabbit. Her energy restored from the morsel of food. Grabbing the rabbit off from the ground the she-cat trotted out of the camp, squeezing her way back through the unusual exit. The thick air nearly suffocated the she-cat as she momentarily forgot about the density beyond the group of cats' clearing. Ignoring the choking air, she took a few steps out. Before the molly could get far, paw steps drew up behind her and a sharp but distinctly young voice called out, "what are you doing!?"

Clover froze, fear draining the energy she had just gotten from the mouse. A small, young she-cat with a silver-grey pelt and white spots was staring at clover. Immediately dropping the rabbit at her feet, the loner stammered, "I-I'm sorry, but I-I need to get back home." Clover swung her head back urgently the way she came, trying to insist on the young cat that she only took the rabbit because she needed it. Clover looked back at the apprentice, she bore her gaze into the young she-cat's own eyes, hoping the stranger would understand her urgency and allow her to leave with the rabbit.

 _ **Owlpaw**_

Sun peered through the dangling vines into the apprentice's den. Owlpaw, dazed at the bright light; blinked several times, letting her eyes adjust to the light. Curled in her nest she yawned, still tired from her full day of hunting practice. Owlpaw managed to chase a rabbit between a small circle of trees so it wouldn't be able to escape. Paledawn, Owlpaw's mentor, had been impressed with the young apprentice, and praised her for her large catch. 

Owlpaw purred as the memory of Paledawn's praise warmed her fur. The molly stood, arching her back above her nest. As she sat back down, preparing to lie and return to sleep, the apprentice heard soft padding outside her den. Groaning, she expected Paledawn to tell her they were expected for the dawn patrol. Owlpaw waited a moment for her mentor to stick her head through the vines. Before long however, the speckled she-cat wondered why Paledawn was not coming in. Furrowing her brow, the apprentice stuck her head out of the den, just in time to see a tabby she-cat slipping out of the camp with Owlpaw's rabbit swinging from her jaw. 

The apprentice hesitated at the loners request, she was unsure what to do. Owlpaw had only been an apprentice for just over a moon. She could tell that the tabby had been traveling a long time, and her ribs were sticking out; clearly underfed. Empathy surged through the small she-cat, nearly knocking her off her paws at the force of the emotion towards the loner. 

"Hurry, go before the others wake up and find you here, they won't be as forgiving as I am." Relief flooded in the tabby's green eyes, she bowed to the apprentice, "Thank you." Owlpaw, taken slightly aback by the gesture nodded back, "Now go." she watched as the molly picked the rabbit back up and bounded through the trees. Owlpaw sighed, hoping she made the right choice in letting the loner keep the rabbit. 

**_Clover_**

At the molly's hesitation, Clover began to panic, not expecting to be able to leave unscathed. Clover was surprised at the speckled cat's response, immediately she bowed. Relief and gratitude swamped over her towards the young she-cat. "Thank you," the tabby bore her green gaze into the spotted she-cat's icy blue one, trying to tell her how much she appreciated the help. The she-cat however, nodded her own head, "now go." Not needing more persuasion, Clover bounded away through the trees. 

Joy exploded through Clover's chest, she was finally able to bring a decent meal home. However, dread began to fill her belly, worried about the ones she left at home. Despite the small mouse she ate having been some time ago, the worry filled her belly enough for the she-cat to keep moving. The tabby sprinted as quickly as she could with the burden of the rabbit; Weaving between the crowded tree trunks and vines. The loner ran the rest of the day, the dread continued to grow, until she saw the sun beginning to set through the trees ahead. Clover sped up, nearly out of the dense air, she could already feel it beginning to thin as she got closer to the edge of the jungle. 

Clover broke trough the final layer of vines and trunks, breathing in fresh air the she-cat finally slowed to a halt. She looked up, the sky was becoming shades of dark reds and vibrant oranges above her. After catching her breath she began to walk up a shallow hill. She was now much closer to her home and with nothing seeming out of the ordinary she began to relax. The dread loosing its grip around her belly, but still refusing to leave. Her neck ached from carrying the rabbit for so long, and her jaw was in such a state that felt as though she weren't going to be able to open it again. 

Reaching the top of the hill, excitement bubbled in clovers chest. The tabby's small den was a small hole buried at the foot of the hill. As she got closer she could her the sounds that put her dimming dread completely at ease. Purring, Clover stood in front of the den and dropped the rabbit, relieved from the weight of the creature. As she set the animal down, tiny paws came scampering from the den, followed by an amused mew. "One at a time, you're too big to go out all at once." 

Clover twitched her whiskers as she saw Pebble and Brick get stuck in the mouth of the den as they both tried to leave at once. With a purr Clover pushed Pebble back, letting Brick slip out and tumble beside the pale she-cat. After him, Pebble let out of squeak of excitement at seeing the mottled she-cat and jumped on Clover. Scrabbling out of the den after his older littermates came Splash, the smallest of the three. They all stood in front of Clover, skinny from their lack of food. Their eyes grew wide when she turned and picked up the rabbit from behind her. "Is that for us?" Pebble squeaked. With a nod from Clover, they Immediately ran to the meat and sunk their teeth in hungrily. 

Clover watched the kits with pride as they began to devour the rabbit, happy she made it in time. So transfixed by the hungry kits she didn't hear the paw steps pad beside her until a thick tail ran down clovers back and entwined with her own. The she cat turned and her green eyes locked with amber ones. With a husky voice, the pale sandy she-cat nuzzled Clovers cheek. "We missed you." Clover purred at her mate's words and closer her eyes to the slowly rising moon, leaning on Poppy. Relief washed over the molly at the realization that her family was safe and soon, every belly will be filled. "I missed you too."

This is my very first short story, ever, I have done long rp examples but never a full short story. So I take great pride in this and will appreciate every like and comment I receive for this short story. Thank you for reading.


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